G-Fafif

TheOldMole wrote: Since I continue not to be able to post comments over there, I'll send my kudos to Greg here for a great piece of work. Thanks Mole and all (and kudos to they who defend Orber Moreno). I needed something to snap me and our readers out of the pre-Game 4 funk. Speaking of 2003, Art Howe is a Phillie coach? He must really light up a room.

Edgy DC wrote: New rule. No game if Greg's not feeling it. If only Bud Selig could be that visionary.

I don't think the rain is a coincidence. Don't play. It doesn't feel right at all, at least not from home. If I were on a train pulling to the Shea stop, I might be thinking differently and I'd hate to tell 56,000 to turn around. But honestly, I'm not feelin' it. Maybe at 8:20 if in fact the tarp comes off. My fleetingest of fleeting moments with Cory Lidle: http://faithandfear.blogharbor.com/blog/_archives/2006/10/11/2409070.html

My Entire Team SeemstobetheonlyonebasedinNewYorktohaveabaseballgametoplay

soupcan wrote:I heard she also offended half her audience when in response to some guy in the crowd admonishing her about a Bush diatribe she said 'Fuck You!'Babs needs to realize that her audience has aged a bit and while they may have blue hair they don't necessarily appreciate blue language.But we do appreciate the orange and blue language.

At the Garden last night, Barbra Streisand reminded her audience she still considers herself a New Yorker and then, according to Newsday, added...GO METS!Go Babs.

SteveJRogers wrote: ="Edgy DC"]="Yancy Street Gang"]Was? I'd like to hear an answer to this one. Not to speak for Elster, but I think the point is that TV announcers are generally not considered "The Voice..." of the team, and that title is reserved for the radio broadcasters. Hence the apporpriate current "Voice of the Mets" is Howie Rose "Put THAT in your books!" There is more of a connection with radio broadcasters than there are with TV guys. Of course there are exceptions (Ralphie Boy) but generally its the Word Picture Artists who fans (of all sports, not just baseball) have a strong affiliation for as oppossed to the TV guys As a rule, I'd agree, but in practice, no. Gary Cohen's 17 seasons on the radio plus his new PBP role on approximately 150 televised games puts him front and center. In that sense, Gary has an opportunity to maintain his status far more than any of his recent TV predecessors have. He's on cable, he's on over the air. I love Howie Rose but I don't think he transcends the broadcasts in nearly the way Cohen does. Just because he has the radio job doesn't mean he is The Voice. My sense is if you ask a hundred Mets fans to "quick, name the Mets announcer," the answer will more often than not come back as Gary Cohen. That could change over time as Howie logs more radio hours and if his calls become famous (if he gets a postseason walkoff homer to his credit, for example or gets to call the last out of the World Series...an out we'd want to put in the books, of course) and if Gary working TV becomes wallpaper. But I doubt Cohen cedes that territory. It's the announcer who makes The Voice, not the job.

More of a don't know than won't pitch situation, according to SNY, but it doesn't sound rosy. Trachsel just getting back from personal biz. Not an option, according to Willie.

El Duque's push-off calf acted up during workouts. Going for MRI. Doesn't sound like he'll be starting. Don't know who will. Above from Willie's presser.

Throw the Dodgers down the well.

In 1986, the Mets started the year by defeating the eventual last-place Pirates. They ended the regular season that way, too. In 2006, the Mets started the year by defeating the eventual last-place Nationals. They ended the regular season that way, too.

Ned Fengus wrote: ="G-Fafif"]Go Ned. What, I'm not welcome? What'd I say? That's go as in Go Tigers.

I recall contemporary accounts referring to the leaders of those great Oriole teams as "F. Robby" and "B. Robby". Also, Terry Cashman immortalized Jackie and Frank as "one Robby going out, one coming in." Speaking of coming in, Go Ned.

To an earlier point, Ralph, Rusty and Fran each took three innings in Game 2 of the '86 NLCS when Murph took ill. To the overriding point, Gary Cohen is the acknowledged flagship voice of the New York Mets. Whether he's not somebody's particular cup of tea is a different matter; that's determined by one's subjective tastes. What cannot be disputed is Gary Cohen's voice is clearly identified as the voice of Mets baseball as of this moment -- not Howie's, not Tom's, not Keith's, not Ron's, not Eddie C.'s He is, in substance if not quite in length of tenture, the Met equivalent of Vin Scully. His deployment in the FAN booth, whether it was through his selfish cunning or the visionary planning of management is perfectly valid. I'm a Gary Cohen fan. I listened to those first-round ESPN Radiocasts of Octobers past just to hear him. If I haven't already, I will flip on the radio Wednesday and Thursday and Saturday in the fifth inning and keep it on through the sixth. If there are other games involving the Mets in this series or other series (let's hope), I will do the same. I know from discussions with others that I'm not the only person who will do this. Granted, the attraction is Mets playoff baseball, but having the Voice of the Mets calling the Mets in the playoffs is clearly a value-added element. The intrigue and backstabbing and gossipy whatnot of the broadcasting industry is entertaining to a limited extent. After a fashion, though, it's about what's put on the air. In this case, the radio-listening Mets fan benefits (I believe) by having Gary Cohen calling parts of the game. It does not put out Howie and Tom to a great extent. That's not really my concern, but it's a legitimate internal one. In other words, they get to do seven regulation innings without Cohen and any extra frames. They'll be fine. Those who would attack Cohen for his upcoming cameos -- whether they are trying to get a rise out of a radio audience, stir up a newspaper readership or just demonstrating their lack of understanding about what it is to be a Mets fan on an Internet board -- don't matter. They, I sense, aren't going to go out of their way to listen to these games on WFAN. They are not likely to have their hopes dashed or routines disrupted because Gary Cohen's voice joins those of Tom McCarthy and Howie Rose. If there's a single person out there who is not related to those two who will be disappointed that they are deprived of an extra inning of them, well, he or she will be one more person than I imagine exists.

There is no doubt a metric that supports Cliff Floyd as an ideal leadoff hitter, particularly over that undisciplined Jose Reyes.

SteveJRogers wrote: To be fair though, we'd be killing the Yankees and Michael Kay if he pulled this kind of stunt any time during the 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 postseasons (though in all likelyhood Kay's working for ESPN radio killed any shot of him or the Yankees pulling something like that off) Its one thing to bring a retired legend like a By Samm in the 1980 WS into the booth or someone who doesn't work the games anymore like Marv Albert in the 2004 Stanley Cup, its another to bring a guy in who calls the games on TV all season just so they can be behind the radio mike for the postseason To the extent that a single Mets fan cares what Michael Kay does with his Octobers (and it would be an extraordinarily limited extent), it would be fine if he did Yankee radiocasts. That would guarantee almost none of us would hear him because I doubt many of us would be listening. Better of course that there are no Yankee games in October, but one miracle at a time. By Saam's a nice reference, but it was the '76 NLCS the longtime Phillie announcer was brought back for. He had retired a year earlier with failing eyesight, just missing out on Philly's return to postseason. And Marv Albert? Do you mean '94? He was still the Rangers' radio voice of record then, but missed a ton of games due to basketball commitments. You couldn't argue he wasn't strongly identified with that team at that time. As for Cohen, he was the radio guy for 17 seasons, the most recent of which was last year. This isn't, say, Dave O'Brien or Ron Darling even being thrown in the radio booth out of the orange and blue for a playoff game. [And thanks metirish re: trax.]

M&MD are world-class A-holes. As usual, at their remove from their audience, they miss the point. This isn't about slapping Tom McCarthy or even gratifying Gary Cohen. It's about serving the Mets fan with the best possible broadcast. They have someone who is considered (rightly, I believe) among the best announcers in the business, someone associated with the team like no other current voice, and he is available. Two innings of Gary Cohen is better than no innings of Gary Cohen. Nine (or however many it takes) innings of Gary Cohen would be ideal, but that wish is prohibitive given that Tom McCarthy does have a job. I've truly stopped listening to M&MD after years of insisting I would. The last time I tuned in for anything but the Willie Randolph report was the day after we clinched when they spit all over it from the top of the show. It may be their cute way of tweaking, but it's no longer fresh and it's not remotely funny. One night they ran over when I turned on the FAN for "Mets Extra" and I was subject to a serious discussion that Carlos Beltran is not a good defensive centerfielder. It was only 30 seconds or so but it convinced me yet again for good that they are the biggest frauds in the media. There isn't a sinkhole large enough to swallow them, their egos and their immense lack of knowledge and talent. (Insert your own Francesa girth joke here if you like.)

Stunningly honest stuff. Thanks for posting.

I was pretty tired the day after the '86 clinching. I'm pretty tired today.

SS - A National League East Champion New York Met C - A National League East Champion New York Met CF - A National League East Champion New York Met 1B - A National League East Champion New York Met 3B - A National League East Champion New York Met LF - A National League East Champion New York Met RF - A National League East Champion New York Met 2B - A National League East Champion New York Met P - A National League East Champion New York Met Put 'em in whatever order you like. They're all champs.

2005: With Nick Johnson on third and two out in a tie game in the tenth inning at Shea Stadium, Willie Randolph elected to pitch to Vinny Castilla instead of walking the slugger to get to Keith Osik, the only available Nationals batter. Castilla singled. The Mets lost.. 2006: The Mets have gone 102-59 since that game. Whatever happens tonight and thereafter, it's been a very good year.

In 1985, while serving as Reds' pitching coach, Jim Kaat had breakfast with his old manager Whitey Herzog. Told him the Reds were looking to get rid of Cesar Cedeno and that Herzog should try to pick him up for the Cardinals, that he still had something left. Herzog listened and Cedeno had a monster September (batted .434 in 28 games) that may very well have been the difference between the Cardinals and Mets down the stretch, the Cardinals winning by 3 games. I hate Jim Kaat for that.

While "The Magic Is Back" was indeed 1980's call to arms (albeit a call to arms like those belonging to Mark Bomback's, John Pacella's and Roy Lee Jackson's), the home run apple didn't debut until 1981, beginning of the season. The Mets tried to keep the Magic theme going for a couple of years. The hat used to read Mets Magic in Metsian script where it now says HOME RUN in block letters. Don't remember when it was switched, but it was well after "Magic" advertising had disappeared. I do remember that in '81, the ad slogan was "The Magic Is Real. Catch It Here." Though not magical per se, the Mets affixed KINGMAN FALLOUT ZONE signs to lamp posts throughout the parking lot, warning patrons that management was not responsible for home runs that shattered windshields and such. Such a fuss to go from 67-95 to 41-62. Jerry Della Femina earned his commission.

Aw p'shaw. Or Don Shaw. I was referring to the depths CPFers plumb in their analysis of the franchise's rich and occasionally wanting history. Any Mets fan can theoretically punch 6986 into an ATM. It takes a special breed to program in a less glorious code. As with the lineups alluded to from 1979 and 1993, no offense intended. Lovingly, Your Fellow Loser

Centerfield wrote: ="cooby"] I do this too, my pin number and most of my log in passwords are Mets #s. I get the feeling that if some hacker were to go around trying the pin "6986", he could make a lot of money off the posters here. This seems more like a "7993" crowd.